Promoting consumer protection

Your editorial of October 19, 2022 on the broad subject of consumer protection for Ugandans was apt.

We Ugandans are perhaps the only people in the “free world” whose government appears not to give a damn in the face of crude and not so crude exploitation at the hands of scammers and even so-called reputable private sector and quasi-public sector entities. The list of examples is long; here is a sample.

Some seven or eight years ago, a telecom company with fanfare launched an “insurance” product whereby premiums were to be paid annually via mobile money. After a year or two, the payment system no longer “accepted” payments. Many of those who had paid in were not officially publicly informed, nor were their previous payments refunded. There was total silence! One who enquired about how to pay their next premium was informed that “our partner has withdrawn” participation in the scheme!

Another example: the telecom companies today “offer” cleverly crafted internet data schemes where ordinary folk pay for blocs of data valid for say three days. After downloading them and using for about an hour and a half, a message pings on your device. And what do you know? The message is 70 percent of your bundle has been used up! Another hour after that, and that ping again. You have no more data. It is exhausted. 

And then those ponzi monsters! The perpetrators do not seem to go through full prosecution (at least I have seen no press reports to that effect) and face deterrent sentences of a financial or custodial nature. 

Investigations seem to linger until the public no longer follows the cases.

There are many other cases where consumers are left to “suffer quietly” including having to buy non-standards-conforming products complete with a genuine or forged quality mark. (Sorry UNBS but this is true).

Your editorial was partly correct to site the “absence of efficient enforcement of consumer rights”.

In my opinion, however, the monster in all this is our old friend: corruption in our public institutions. Just think: How many officials in the enforcement, investigative and judicial systems will shirk at accepting a Shs50 million bribe from operators of a ponzi operation that has netted tens of billions? So fight corruption; regulations and laws will be enforced; perpetrators will be put behind bars and consumer protection will be enhanced. It’s quite simple really.

HGK Nyakoojo, Buziga, Kampala.